


In Bloom

by JooniesWinterFlower



Series: Soulflower Soulmates [1]
Category: World Wrestling Entertainment, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Anxiety Attacks, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Idols, M/M, Multi, Platonic Soulmates, References to Depression, Romantic Soulmates, Self-Esteem Issues, Social Anxiety, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-21
Updated: 2020-01-08
Packaged: 2021-01-31 16:01:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21448873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JooniesWinterFlower/pseuds/JooniesWinterFlower
Summary: Many eons ago a beloved goddess of nature blessed the human race with a way to find the ones meant for them. Every person from then on was born with the marks of her children.These marks became known as Soulflowers, a living representation of a soulmate. Colorless at a person's birth, they become vibrant and filled with color when a person touches their soulmate for the first time.Rihanna Williams is a former culinary arts student content with her quiet, boring life, working in her grandparent's bookstore. The last thing she expects is for her soulmates to be the same men who's music helped her survive the traumatic year that led to her dropping out of college.BTS is wrapping up the North American portion of the Love Yourself:Speak Yourself World Tour and the last thing Namjoon, Hosoek and Yoongi are expecting is to meet the final member of their soul circle in a Brooklyn bookstore.
Relationships: Jeon Jungkook/Kim Taehyung | V, Jung Hoseok | J-Hope/ Kim Namjoon | RM/Min Yoongi | Suga, Jung Hoseok | J-Hope/Original Female Character(s), Jung Hoseok/Kim Namjoon/Min Yoongi/Rihanna Williams, Kim Namjoon | RM/Original Female Character(s), Kim Seokjin | Jin/Park Jimin, Min Yoongi | Suga/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Soulflower Soulmates [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1546270
Comments: 2
Kudos: 48





	1. Planting Seeds

**Author's Note:**

> This is a ridiculously self indulgent thing that's been on my mind for months and it's also my first foray into writing BTS. ARMY please don't let the wrestling tag scare you off. This fic is completely BTS-centric, the wrestling tag is there because a few AU versions of my favorite professional wrestlers appear as side characters.

Rihanna Williams yawned as she turned the sign from closed to open on Terrace Books, the small independent bookstore that had been owned by her family since the 1930's.

"Pop Pop, I don't know why you insisted on still coming in, Grams will have my damn hide if you hurt that ankle any worse then you already have." Rihanna scolded her grandfather, who was sitting in a comfortable chair, casted ankle resting on a step stool.

"I've opened this bookstore every single day, except the day your father was born, and the day after September 11th, A little crack in this old ankle of mine won't stop me now," Raymond Williams told his 22 year old grandchild.

Riri rolled her eyes and twisted her long, plum colored hair into a messy bun on the top of her head as she walked toward the back, stopping to kiss her grandfather on the cheek. "Yell if you need me, old man. I'll go unpack yesterday's shipment. I think the cookbook I special ordered for Cassandra's birthday is in there."

🌸💮🏵🌺🌻

Meanwhile, the seven members of BTS had taken advantage of the rare opportunity of a few free hours, while they prepared for their concert at MetLife Stadium, to relax. Kookie and Taehyung had decided to hit up an arcade filled with classic games they'd heard about online, Jin and Jimin had gone shopping, Namjoon and Hobi had decided to explore the city on foot, while Yoongi took advantage of their empty hotel suite to get some uninterrupted sleep.

Pulling up their hoods, the two men easily blended into the crowd of oblivious New Yorkers. It was something Namjoon had always appreciated about the city. It didn't matter how famous you were; it was almost too easy to disappear.

They ended up on a quieter Brooklyn street when a bookstore caught his interest. 'Terrace Books' the green awning read, ivy surrounding the words.

"You want to go in there, Joonie-Hyung?" Hobi asked when Namjoon glanced at the shop for the third time. "Yeah, it looks interesting," Namjoon replied. Entering the shop, the two men were greeted by an elderly man with snow-white hair sitting in a chair next to the counter, his ankle propped up on a step stool.

"Welcome to Terrace Books!" The man said cheerily. "If you need any help finding anything, my granddaughter is around the shop somewhere. Just a warning though, Riri most likely has her headphones on. You can't miss her. She's a tiny thing with purple hair and pink glasses."

"Thanks," Namjoon replied with a smile before both of them moved deeper into the store, Namjoon already liking the eclectic feel of it, with its high shelves crammed with both new and used books.

Rounding a corner, they caught a glimpse of the old man's aforementioned granddaughter standing on a ladder shelving books. Just like the man had warned them, the girl had bright purple cat ear headphones on, and was bobbing her head to whatever she was listening to.

Both men were about to move on without disturbing the girl's work when they heard a very familiar phrase.

"eoseo was bangtaneun cheand o roeumiji?" The girl murmured in slightly butchered, but still recognizable Korean, before she hummed the opening bars to Dope.

Hobi and Namjoon looked at each other, the two men quickly coming to realize that they had a choice to make. Did they quietly leave the store and not alert the girl that two of the artists she was currently listening to were right behind her? Or did they make an ARMY's day?

Before either man could make a decision, the girl's foot slipped on a rung of the ladder and she started to fall backward.

Quickly moving forward, Hobi pressed a hand to the girl's back, helping her to keep her balance, only to be surprised by the jolt he felt coursing through his entire body the moment he touched her. Impulsively, he grabbed the girl, 'THEIR LAST SOULMATE?!' his mind was screaming, by the waist and lifted her off the ladder completely.

"Holy fuck!" Riri said spinning around to face them, having felt the same jolt of energy. "You're my...." Her voice trailed off as she got a good look at Hobi before her eyes darted to Namjoon standing slightly behind them.

Taking in a shaky breath, she hesitantly lifted up her shirt, where they could see a group of soulflowers marking her ribs, all but two still colorless; an odd-looking purple flower with a blue platonic outline, and a bright yellow sunflower edged in red.

Silently, Hobi pushed up the sleeve of his sweatshirt to show his last remaining, colorless Soulflower; a water lily was now a vibrant purple with a red outline.

Hobi glanced back at Namjoon, who closed his eyes for a moment before reaching for his own sleeve, revealing his own mix of platonic and romantic Soulflowers.

"Can I…." Namjoon trailed off as he reached for her, at a lost for words at finding their last Soulmate working in a dusty Brooklyn bookstore.

Riri took a deep breath before quickly grabbing Namjoon's hand, all three of them watching as the same water lily, etched by fate on Hobi's skin became the same red outlined vibrant purple.

Riri gently touched the water lily before hovering above the black lotus edged in red on Namjoon's skin.

"Suga?" She asked in a whisper. "I have this one, too"

Namjoon nodded. "That's Yoongi's soulflower, yes." He confirmed.

"Your….our soulmate," Hobi said in thickly accented English

"I'm your soulmate, " Riri echoed. "My romantic soulmates are three members of BTS," she said in complete shock at this fantastical turn of events.

"You only have one platonic?" Namjoon asked.

"Yeah, we almost got robbed last year. The Irish guy that owns the club down the block was in here and chased them off. Turned out he was my platonic soulmate." Rihanna explained. "Finny is WAY older, but he and his wife are the best big brother and sister ever."

"I think…I think I should sit down." Rihanna told the two K-pop idols as she did just that, sitting on the bottom rung of the ladder Hobi had just saved her from falling from.

Both men sat on the floor in front of her, all three silent for a moment before Riri said quietly. "This is so fucking weird. I have tickets for Sunday's show. Oh! Oh shit. I'm Rihanna! I should have probably said that first. Most people call me Riri." The African American girl said with a giggle.

Namjoon glanced at Hobi with a grin. "It's a good thing that you and Yoongi have been working hard on your English."

"I can speak a little Korean," Riri said in halting, unsure Korean, "My friend said the New York accent messes it up, though."

Both men grinned. "It does," they say in unison.

"But it's very cute," Hobi said with the bright sunshine smile he was famous for.

"You need to come and meet Yoongi, He's napping back at our hotel" Namjoon said more seriously. Rihanna nodding in agreement "I have to tell my grandfather, Oh my goodness! And call my sister to come to work for me."

Namjoon and Hoseok stood up, each extending a hand to help Riri up. "Oh, you are both so tall."

"Yoonie isn't the shortest anymore. He'll be happy," Hobi says with a smirk.

"Come on, let's tell my Pop." Riri says, leading her mates back to the front of the store.

"Found what you needed, gentlemen?" Ray asked Hobi and Namjoon, who both actually blushed and hid their smiles.

Riri giggled and blushed herself. "I think so, Pop. They're my soulmates! Two of them anyway, and they want to take me to meet the third. Can you handle the shop until Sandi comes to take over for me?"

At his granddaughter's words, Ray hefted himself to his feet, balancing gingerly on his uninjured leg.

"Soulmates, eh?" Ray said, looking the two Korean men up and down. "What's my grandbaby's Soulflower?"

Both Namjoon and Hoseok showed the man their still bare arms, "The Water Lily is mine, Pop." Riri explained "They have another romantic soulmate who has my flower, too."'

"Go on then, grab your stuff and get. I'll call your sister myself." Ray told her.

"I'll be right back!"'Riri told them before dashing toward the back of the store, leaving Namjoon and Hobi alone with their soulmate's 'Pop'.

"Were any of you planning on telling me that you're both in that boy band she likes so much?"'The large man said, dropping back in his chair and looking up at the two idols. "She lives with her Granny and I, and you and the rest of your group are all over her walls, I recognize your faces, and I'm going to take a wild guess and say the last member of your Soul Circle is...hmm. I believe he has purple hair at the moment. The other rapper?"

Namjoon nodded. "Yes, his name is Yoongi"

Riri came back, now carrying an Overwatch backpack and wearing a bright yellow snapback. "I'm ready!"

"Be careful, Princess." Ray told her "Stay out of sight of the Paps until you're ready for the storm this is sure to bring to your life, because famous or not, I will absolutely let these boys have it if you get hurt in any way."

Riri sent her Pop a surprised look "How..."

"You think I don't pay attention to what you like or something? Especially them?"

"I know you do, it just didn't think you could recognize them on sight." Riri said blushing with embarrassment as she realized that her being hardcore ARMY was going to add an extra layer of....something to her Soul Circle.

"I love you Pop." Riri said leaning down and hugging the older man, who was for all intents and purposes her father more than her grandfather.

"I love you too, Princess. I expect the 4 of you for dinner before these men leave the city, and I'll start talking to your grandmother about hiring someone on here for when you have to go"

Rihanna just nodded quietly, knowing a move to South Korea was inevitable. She couldn't expect her mates to move to the US on more then a part-time basis and there were global laws in place allowing for expedited citizenship in the case of a Soulflower bond. Her and her mates would be granted dual citizenship to each other's home countries as soon as their bond was registered.

"We'll take care of her sir." Namjoon said as he and Hobi respectfully bowed to Ray.

"You better" He said simply "Now go on"

The three of them left the shop and started making their way toward the Four Seasons Hotel, where the group was staying, Hobi reaching to wrap an arm around her waist as Namjoon called their manager Sejin to update him on the new turn of event


	2. Wilted Lily

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rihanna meets Yoongi and talks about her past. The newly completed Soul Circle gets closer.

Riri still couldn't believe this was happening. She was walking down the street with Hoseok's arm around her waist as he gave her that bright smile she'd spent the last three years only seeing through a screen as Namjoon helped them communicate and get to know each other. 

They were her soulmates. The Rapline of BTS was her soulmates.

_What the ever-loving FUCK was her life?_

"Are you sure we shouldn't try to warn Yoongi I'm coming?" Rhianna asked again nervously as they got closer to the hotel where the group was staying 

"I know for a fact his phone is on silent." Namjoon explained "He didn't sleep well last night, so he said that he was gonna shut off his phone and rest while we were all out exploring" 

"I'm just nervous. I guess. What if he doesn't like me?" She said with a sigh. 

"You're his soulmate princess, how could he not?" Joon told her confidently as they walked down a side street where Sejin was already waiting to let them in a service entrance. 

"Sejin, meet Rihanna. Our soulmate." Joon introduced her to their manager

Rihanna waved shyly from her place partially hidden behind Hoseok as her nerves started to get the best of her. 

Sejin said something in rapid-fire Korean that she couldn't catch, both her soulmates nodding in agreement before Namjoon told her "The others will be back in a few hours, you don't have to meet them all today if you aren't ready but we did have plans to eat a late lunch together. 

_Be brave_, Riri she told herself before answering "I want to meet them"

Hobi hugged her to his side as they walked to a private elevator, which took them to a floor of the hotel that was completely empty except for a few stoic looking men and women in dark suits. Leading her to a set of double doors at the end of the hallway Namjoon turned to her and asked "Ready?" 

_Uh no not really_, she said internally but nodded anyway 

"Yoongi-hyung!" Namjoon called out as they walked into the opulent hotel suite that resembled a luxurious apartment. 

"What?" A deep voice growled in Korean as Min Yoongi appeared in a doorway, dressed only in a pair of boxers. Rihanna made an embarrassing squeaking sound and hid completely behind Hobi making the taller man actually giggle "It's okay. He's just a grumpy little bear." He told her 

"Who's that?" Yoongi asked, trying to see who was hiding behind one of his soulmates.

"Our Lily" Namjoon said simply causing Yoongi's Rihanna es t a widen in shock as Namjoon pushed up the sleeve of his hoodie and showed the older man his completed Soulmark. The four blue outlined flowers that represented the Vocal line of Bangtan and the four red outlined flowers that represented his romantic soulmates. 

"We were drawn to a bookstore in Brooklyn and there she was. Hobi saved her from falling off a ladder" the rapper explained 

Taking a deep breath, Riri stepped from behind Hoseok and bowed her head before saying "Hello, Yoongi-ssi. My name's Rihanna." in her weirdly accented but understandable Korean. 

Yoongi blinked the sleep from his eyes as he got a good look at the girl who was apparently the final member of his soul circle. She was short and curvy with dark purple hair and skin the color of the mocha coffees he favored. Walking closer to her he held out his hand and after she looked down at it for a moment the girl took a deep breath and placed her smaller hand in his long-fingered one, both feeling the jolting sensation of a completed bond. 

Yoongi let go reluctantly and turned his attention to the row of soulflowers lining his thigh, and at the very top, the formerly greyscale water lily was now the same dark purple of Rihanna's hair and edged in red. 

"Holy shit" Yoongi whispered, eyes darting from his soulflowers to the girl in front of him

"My soulmates this is real?" Rhianna muttered, head-spinning "I think I need to…" 

"Sit." Yoongi took her hand again and led her to a couch "You need to sit, Jagi"

Yoongi and Namjoon sat to either side of the obviously overwhelmed girl, while Hobi gracefully lowered himself to the floor in front of her. 

"I just this is some fanfic type shit you know?" Riri said with a nervous sounding giggle "You guys. You guys saved me. Your music saved my fucking life and now we're in a soul circle? It's insane." She babbled "Why me? I'm nobody. I'm nothing." 

All three men listened to Riri with various degrees of shock and anger. Hobi and Namjoon had known this girl, been bonded to her all of 90 minutes, and both felt anger and sadness that their soulmate thought of herself as nothing. 

Surprisingly it was Yoongi that was the first to speak up "Why do you say we saved you?" He asked in heavily accented English. All of Bangtan had worked hard in the last year to speak more English but he and Hobi had felt an almost unnatural drive to get better at the language and now he realized why. Their soulmate was American, though it seemed she spoke at least some Korean. He wondered if she'd felt the same drive as they had.

Rihanna took a deep breath and started to explain. 

Rihanna had loved to cook ever since she was a little girl. Which worked well for her since he parents were rarely home and she'd taken care of her siblings by herself most of the time being the oldest. When she was 14 her parents were found guilty of neglect after a teacher had realized the three Williams siblings were pretty much raising themselves and they were sent to New York to live with their paternal grandparents. 

It was the best thing that could have happened. Rihanna got to finally be a kid and her grandmother only encouraged her love of cooking with the treats she would make to sell in the bookstore. By the time Riri was 18 and ready for college she'd been determined to be a professional chef and been accepted into the Culinary Institute of America.

Then she met Alex and everything fell apart. 

Alexander McClain was another first-year student at the Institute and he was one of the first people who'd gone out of their way to make friends with Rhianna, who was shy and introverted due to her upbringing and the responsibility that had been piled upon her at such a young age.

"I thought he was my friend." Riri saying staring at her hands. "But he wasn't. He'd steal my recipes and I could never prove anything. He twisted it all around and made everyone think I was the one stealing. Everyone was harassing me…so I quit. I let him take my dreams away because I was too scared to stand up for myself. I got really depressed after I left school…and I thought about…not being around anymore."


End file.
